Manchester United have been tipped to land 'the next Wayne Rooney' by a former striker.
The Red Devils are looking towards a future without the legendary Cristiano Ronaldo in their ranks, with speculation intensifying that the Portuguese could in fact depart Old Trafford as early as January. His contract ends next summer.
Marcus Rashford has been playing up front on occasion for Erik ten Hag, while Anthony Martial is another option in the squad. Michael Owen, however, has suggested that Ten Hag could look at at a younger option to replace the 37-year-old Ronaldo at the top of the XI.
“I think when you’re Manchester United, you're probably looking at the next Wayne Rooney, the next 18-year-old, 19-year-old, 20-year-old," Owen said, speaking to AceOdds.
“If you're going to buy somebody that you're going to pay, make money and that's going to nail that position down for the next decade. But there's nobody really out there at the moment that they’ve done that with.
“So they’ve had to bring players in like Casemiro, like Ronaldo, very much the here and now. But they might need to be replaced in the short-term.
“Cristiano Ronaldo obviously isn't getting any younger and is not going to be there for another four, five years.
“You never know, it might be his last season. So from that point of view, you do wonder where goals will come from. Marcus Rashford has always been a goal scorer but never been absolutely prolific.
“[Anthony] Martial has had lots of chances over time. He's never been really prolific into the twenties, let's say. So I think in terms of scoring goals, that's where Manchester United will have to address it at some point.”
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Speculation over Cristiano Ronaldo's Manchester United future has intensified after he refused to come on against Tottenham in midweek, with Chelsea among the clubs linked with a January move.
However, Erik ten Hag wants the five-time Ballon d'Or winner to see out his contract at Old Trafford. It has also emerged that Ronaldo didn't receive a single vote for this year's Ballon d'Or, as he finished outside the top three for the first time since 2005.
Meanwhile, United are reportedly prepared to fight it out with Chelsea and PSG to sign Inter Milan centre-back Milan Skriniar – and have been linked with a mega-money move for Atletico Madrid and Portugal forward Joao Felix.
